Disclaimer: I own nothing but my imagination

Again thanks for comments... i laughed at the last one and cried a bit inside too xD Hope you enjoy this... i did, tho it was a kinda slow process... aaaand i felt a bit evil writing this^^;

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Chapter VI

Only when his systems automatically rebooted, did Bumblebee learn how long it had taken him to cool down and restart after that horrifying explosion. His vision was still hazy but he could at least move. So he dug.

After a moment of work he punched a hole through the pile of rubble that had imprisoned him and crawled out on to what was once the factory's ground floor. Looking around he noticed it was almost evening and that Starscream was still slumped on the ground, possibly repairing himself. He hadn't noticed Bumblebee yet, so the little Autobot decided to stay put and try to listen to Starscream, who was, unsurprisingly, murmuring to himself.

"What's going on!? You're not supposed to go against me! I control you now!" fumed the Seeker as he spoke to himself, inspecting his spark chamber for damage. The sudden implosion he felt and the explosion which had obliterated the entire area didn't seem to hurt him in any way aside from draining his strength, making him feel like he'd flow from Earth to Cybertron ten times straight. He could barely move and his audio and visual receptors distorted his perception. The hazy display was filled with those annoying little symbols, which made his processor slowly overload itself, but the energy signals were still there: both belonging to the Autobot and the mysterious power source hidden in the boy's house.

Suddenly he froze. More signals appeared and seemed to be closing in on him fast. Focusing, he could recognize his leader's distinct aura, followed by his trine mates, that piece of servile scrap Blackout and one of Soundwave's minions. He had a pretty clear idea what they were after, and if they found him in this shaken state, his whole strategy would be undermined and his ambitious plans would be rendered futile.

Painstakingly, he climbed to his feet and steadied himself. He had to think fast. Facing five opponents would prove quite difficult in his current situation, even considering that he possessed the Allspark's mighty power; he still stubbornly refused to acknowledge that he was having trouble controlling it. He must not have focused enough before, his slip-ups were the result of that, he tried to reason. Megatron did not know that, however, and it still gave him some advantage over the powerful triple-changer. Yet, he did not want to have to deal with all of them at once: as much as he wanted to show off with his new power, he did not want to see Blackout's ugly façade or listen to Skywarp's taunts. Yes, that was it.

Deciding on the course of action, he fired up his engines and took off. His transformation wasn't as swift as usual; his systems were still a bit unstable, but it was enough for him to flee from Megatron's party. Before he blasted off however, he sent a short series of shells towards Bumblebee's hiding place, having felt him the entire time; but as he was short on it at the moment, he decided to bid him farewell for now in his usual strafing manner. The yellow Autobot ducked and prepared to fire back but his attacker had shot upward and away before he could even shift into position. Not wasting any time, he contacted Optimus and told him everything he could remember about the strange explosion, unable to explain what had exactly happened and how Starscream had felt his presence. The Autobot leader was glad that Bee was safe but still reprimanded him and repeated his order to stay back and this time the camaro warrior was going to listen.

--

"Megatron, update on Starscream's position – now heading west," Soundwave told his leader. "The Autobot he engaged – survived, but had given Prime an odd report."

"Proceed."

Soundwave relayed what he had learned from the Autobots' conversation, the details of Starscream's peculiar condition unexplained, but enough for Megatron's processor to start working rapidly. "Well done, Soundwave. It seems the energy we felt earlier was coming from him," he told his troops. "I have a feeling it was an action he did not control entirely and which could give us much advantage. If he is unable to manipulate the Allspark to do his bidding, he may not be much of a threat to us."

"As if he had ever been a real threat for you, mighty Megatron!" interjected Blackout eagerly, but only earning a shot from his leader's cannon.

"Silence! I know perfectly well what we are dealing with, as you have earlier pointed out, I should know best what he's capable of. And I know how dangerous he is if underestimated."

Blackout was left muted, with a sniggering Skywarp barrel-rolling above him. "Pay attention! Employ caution, we don't know how the Cube's power had changed his own. What we do know is that he won't fight the three of us at the same time and we will use his cowardice to corner him-"

"'Three of us', Megatron?" inquired Thundercracker. Megatron would have sent him an evil glare if he could in his jet form. He hated when his soldiers interrupted his speeches and it seemed his blue flier and not Starscream was due to some 'lecturing'.

"Yes, three of us. It is quite clear that none of you have noticed the distinct radiation coming from Starscream's direction other that his own." The three aerial cons refocused their sensors sheepishly and then gasped.

"It feels like-!"

"Thundercracker. You and Ravage are to retrieve it. The rest of use will go after Starscream." Reluctantly, the blue jet glided underneath Blackout's chassis. The cat-like mech was ejected, similarly to Skorponok at the human base some time ago, and landed gracefully onto Thundercracker's frame, which enveloped him so that the smaller Decepticon would not fall off. Silently, the jet broke away from his team and zoomed off to his destination.

Megatron's speed increased, Blackout having trouble keeping up, while Skywarp wasn't even trying to go fast. They lowered their altitude and as soon as they broke through the thick clouds they located their fleeing target.

"You know what to do, just make sure his spark chamber isn't damaged," reminded Megatron letting his soldiers do the dirty job. Skywarp laughed maniacally and dove sharply, descending like a hawk on its prey.

--

Starscream felt the attacker, before his receptors picked up the roar of the engines, as his trine mate got on his tail. There was no mech capable of matching him in speed on Cybertron or Earth, he knew that, but dealing with Skywarp was somewhat more difficult. The black jet opened fire and Starscream felt his armor denting. This was the favorite tactic of the annoying Seeker: to give chase, intimidate and put the target off their stride only to ambush them from a chosen position ahead when they were too focused on losing him. But he knew it too well to get tricked; instead of maneuvering to get him off his tail, he continued to increase his speed even more, giving the Allspark a real test run. It seemed cooperative at this moment and supplied his engines with what seemed to be unlimited power allowing him to go faster than ever before. Perhaps Skywarp could appear anywhere in front of him to try and intercept or shoot him, but he would be unable to even react before Starscream passed him like a blur.

Megatron watched his second straining his afterburners and streaking across the sky, rapidly turning into a little dot on the horizon. So the Allspark did enhance his speed, making him quite impossible to catch, even with Skywarp's abilities, he mussed. Launching missiles after him would also be futile, out chasing them would not be a problem to his swift Air Commander; he had seen him done it so many times on Cybertron, and that was without the boost from the Cube's power.

Time for plan 'B', he thought as he slowed and dropped down to the field that stretched to the horizon. The chase didn't last long; Megatron could see he would not succeed by pursuit – he would have to make Starscream come to him.

"Skywarp, Blackout, fall back. You can't catch him that way."

"But Megatron, I still haven't-!" tried to argue Skywarp, his pride as a Seeker hurt yet again by Starscream's incredible performance.

"Fall back, Skywarp, no discussion!"

The chopper-shaped con, who wasn't far ahead of Megatron, unable to keep up with the jets' speed, landed heavily at his master's feet, bowing his head in a defeated manner.

"Forgive me, master, I have failed you."

"That was quite expected," grumbled Skywarp as he teleported right beside Blackout, earning a glare from him. "You'd be no match for his speed, even if he was dilly-dallying. I don't know why Megatron took you with us, you're useless!"

Blackout was about to blow a fuse but Megatron silenced them both with his fusion cannon shooting between their feet, sending the mechs flying from the force of the blast.

"Silence!!" he bellowed. "I will not have you glitches behaving like spoiled brats. You both have failed and both of you will shut up, or my next shot won't miss!" The two aerial cons picked themselves up warily, exchanging hostile glances but kept quiet. "Now, Skywarp, get ready to teleport us to Starscream when I give the order. Soundwave will give you the coordinates when the moment is right."

"But he…" he began to protest – even if he did warp, Starscream would have no difficulty in leaving them in his exhaust fumes, but seeing Megatron's eyes flash dangerously at him, he shut his mouth again and nodded. The silver mech growled and then found the frequency on where he could communicate with his second in command.

"Soundwave, monitor his movement, tell me when he stops," he said to the orbiting Decepticon and then shut down his link with his soldiers so they could not listen in. "Starscream," Megatron sent across the line. "We need to talk."

--

The deep and surprisingly calm voice of his ex-leader disturbed him, when he received the private message. It was never a good sign when Megatron was acting nice… He kept speeding in the general direction west; at the moment it was the only thing he felt was safe. He had learned eons ago that you could never be careful enough when dealing with the Decepticon leader. "What do you want, Megatron?" he snapped, trying to sound confident rather than confused. "It's rather rude to first chase me then try to act all friendly. I'm not falling for that!"

"My dear Starscream, I think you realize I'm past caring for such a pointless detail as good manners where you are concerned. It is you who went against me first, as usual, and now I must do something about it. Those are the rules of the game we play, don't you agree?"

Starscream shook with rage, his altitude dropping violently. "I'm not playing any slagging games with you, Megatron!! I'm serious this time, I told you at the dam. But you didn't listen!" he spat, his engines whirring angrily. "I'll make you pay for ignoring me again, I'm not giving up the Allspark!"

Megatron smirked, shaking his head. "And here I thought you wanted to destroy it? Didn't you say it yourself that as long as it exists the Fallen will not stop at nothing until it belongs to him? I don't see you destroying your merged sparks to make that ambition fulfilled, or is your rebellion only words and unworthy of sacrifice?"

The silver mech hoped it would sting and unnerve his Seeker but the fury and craze he heard in Starscream's reply surprised him. "And give up on this power that can finally make a change around here!? Don't take me for a fool, Megatron! I've lived too long in your shadow to pass on this opportunity to finally make you see beyond self-minded dictatorship!"

"But it is you who doesn't see how foolish your plan is," Megatron stated calmly. "If you, we do not destroy it, the Fallen will keep on chasing you. Why do you think I'm here, talking to you right now? It's because he wants you dead. He ordered me to kill you."

An uncomfortable silence passed between them, Megatron realizing he revealed a part of his secret to Starscream, but decided it had to be done to achieve his goal – Starscream had to trust him, at least for a moment.

"And since when do you take orders from him, mighty leader?" Starscream's voice was filled with venom. Suddenly something became crystal clear and he trembled from a burst of fierce emotion. "You made me become that psychopath's doormat when you left because you were one before that, didn't you!? Y-you… cowardly…piece of… scrap!!"

--

Megatron growled with satisfaction as Soundwave sent him the message that Starscream had slowed his pace. This was it.

Nodding to Skywarp, the three Decepticons were pulled into the space bridge and momentarily appeared just above Starscream, who was hanging in mid-air, and grabbing hold of him, pulled him down to earth. The surprised Seeker could only yelp as he hit the rocky surface of a mountain slope hard, the weigh of his assailants pinning him to the ground.

"Get off of me!!" he screeched so shrilly that no human ear could have withstood the pitch. Even the Decepticons' audio receptors weren't dealing with the sound too well which gave Starscream a moment he needed to free himself. Focusing his processor on controlling the Allspark, he boosted his engines and strained his joints to throw the mechs off. In an instant the three were scattered among the rocks. Starscream wasted no time, he had to flee again but Skywarp's reflexes were sharp this time. He teleported himself again, this time behind his standing trine mate and grabbed a hold of his wings, driving his claws into the metal.

"You're not that fast, Screamer," he mocked, satisfied with the whine of rage coming from the captured mech. "Blackout, hurry the slag up!"

The chopper jumped to his feet and like a rugby player, rammed into Starscream's chest, sending the two struggling jets back into the rocky wall, both of them grunting in pain at the impact. "That's for your mockery, Skywarp. Now hold him still so I can teach him some manners."

"You forget who you're dealing with!" shouted Starscream, kicking his clawed feet up and thrusting them at Blackout's chest, pushing the con away, energon leaking from the holes he made. "I… am… invincible!!" he raged, spurring himself into a fighting frenzy. He ignited his foot thrusters, driving Skywarp into the wall, shaking himself free of his clutches. At the same time he extended both of his arms, which transformed into a machine gun and a rocket launcher, and gave his all to keep Blackout from getting up, preferably ever. The chopper con staggered under the assault of many rounds and missiles, his heavy armor tearing, his more vulnerable parts exposed to the rain of fire. He dropped down behind a boulder, his battle systems badly damaged and energon leaking from his chest, trying to avoid his systems from shutting down.

Skywarp wasn't doing so well either, his grip on his victim's wings was beginning to loosen while his own wings were mercilessly pummeled into the old, unyielding stone. When Starscream felt the black claws release him completely, he spun around, freeing himself and sending Skywarp to the ground. Stepping on his back, he kicked himself into the air and sent a few blasts at the black jet's lying frame.

Megatron was waiting for that moment. The powerful shot from his fusion cannon to the Seeker's lower back sent him smoking down against the wall again, the violent force stunning him for a moment long enough for Megatron to transform into his jet mode and crash into the smaller mech.

Perhaps Skywarp didn't dare to perform this cruel deed because he knew what it felt like, but Megatron, not being created a flier, but modified later on, did not have any trouble with this task: without a second thought, he tugged at his second's wings with all his might, ripping the metal and tearing the cables, making Starscream live up to his name as his screams reverberated among the stone walls and valleys.

"Megatron!!!" he wailed, kicking his feet and clawing at the mountain slope, snarling like a wild beast but unable to free himself. The pain was incredible, sending tremors through his whole frame as the silver mech threw his prized wings away, snorting, his superior smirk dark.

"Now, you will stay still and listen to what I have to say," ordered Megatron sternly, holding Starscream down; he really did not want to play at the moment. The Seeker growled.

"Go to the pits, you coward!!" He felt a pain in his spark and a shudder tossing his whole body, and then the metal plates on his back began to move on their own accord. The sudden transformation caught Megatron off guard and before he could determine the nature of the change, he was blasted away by two small cannons that formed between Starscream's engines. The force was strong enough to send the bigger mech tumbling down the slope, past the rock formation where Blackout was tending to his wounds. He used his claws to stop from falling down a cliff then hoisted himself up back on his feet, determined to put an end to this tiresome scuffle.

But instead of a mocking laugh he was expecting to hear, Starscream whined sharply as his new cannons started changing more into what looked like unformed wings, pulling at his back plates and ripping material from the Seeker's more delicate inner parts, splashing everything around with energon. Skywarp, whose back was smoking from the earlier assault, was picking himself up, slowly, painfully. He heard his trine mate writhing in agony nearby, which he felt like doing too – his own wings were busted! But… at least he still had them. Standing, he pointed his cannons at Starscream warily and took a peek at what was left of his pride and joy, his most treasured feature, his freedom. He could not imagine something this horrible being done to him, he knew what the damaged mech had to be feeling, and he would never want to trade places with him. A selfish despot or not, it was better to always stay on Megatron's good side and he would shoot himself before he tried to pull stunts like his crazy mate.

Slowly and cautiously, Starscream's oppressors closed in on him, not exactly sure what was going on. Their prey seemed no more dangerous than one of the hatchlings; moans of pain coming from his broken body, shaking furiously among the rubble. The mechs didn't lower their weapons however. Although they'd never suspect the Seeker to go so low with his tricks, they could not trust him enough to leave themselves unprotected.

"What's… happe-ing to m-me??" rasped Starscream, unable to control the shaking. Megatron peered at his flier, deep in thought. If the Allspark had reacted to his assault like this, would it… could it perhaps transform a mech to enhance his power? Or cause their structure to deteriorate and kill it, like Prime had hoped? Could the power Starscream now possessed be… transferred to others?

An idea was born in his processor, something he never had contemplated. But before he had a moment to put his thoughts together, Blackout stepped up to the traitor and pointed his arm gun at his head. "Let me finish that for you, master," he purred.

Time stopped for a nanosecond; Starscream lifting his head, despair and fear in his red eyes, Blackout's triumphant sneer as his ambition to erase the hated second in command was about to become reality and Megatron, a moment too slow to slap his soldier's arm away before the blast shattered Starscream's helmet, obliterating the flier; taking him away from his side forever.

His helpless shout was drowned in the deafening echo spreading among the mountain peaks, accompanied by the clinking of metal pieces scattered on the ground.

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A/N: Um... sorry for this xD But i couldn't let Screamer's plan succeed... it wouldn't be right ;x Hope this doesn't make you guys Hulk Smash the screen or something. I promise, it's gonna be ok! For some mechs at least... HOHOHO! Stay tuned!